The social construction of race has long been apparent in
Latin American civilizations, since the first encounters between European and
Indigenous Peoples. It has often
shaped the course of history, many times as the source of social unrest and
tension in various cultures. In
some cases, race stratified a distinction between the diverse mix of people now
referred to as Latin Americans.
However, in one particular instance, the social construction of race was
rebelled against, and arguably, overcome, giving way to a unique example in
Latin American history: The Cuban Revolution.
In
the wake of the Cuban Revolution, Marxist and Leninist ideals saturated Cuban
society, depicting capitalism and imperialism as the root of all problems; the
solution, evidently, was revolution.
One of the revolution’s orchestrators was Che Guevara, a medical student
from Argentina, who observed firsthand the poverty-ridden countries across the
Andes, and determined his “internationalist” attitude could bring together
victims of a failing system and inspire reform. He was known as a Marxist revolutionary, believing the
battle against capitalist imperialism was his, anywhere in the world. After his brief participation in social
reforms in Guatemala, Guevara fled to Mexico, where he met Fidel Castro, a law
student and Cuban nationalist revolutionary from a wealthy family. Castro felt strongly against
imperialism, being involved in nationalist student movements in Cuba, as well
as traveling to Bogota to protest U.S. imperialism.
Castro
and Guevara, joined by Raul, Fidel’s brother, drove a force of guerrillas into
Cuban cities, eventually arriving in Cuba to establish reforms
immediately. These reforms manifested
as a result of anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist philosophies presented by
Castro in public speeches. Che Guevara
also promoted socialism, believing that money should be replaced with ideals,
and insisted in the diversification of an economy centered on sugar. These were some of the first steps that
truly defined Cuba’s history, which arguably began to level out racial
hierarchies.
The
previous inegalitarian model was particularly oppressive, especially for blacks,
but with unemployment eliminated, there was no competition for jobs as there
was before. Also with education free,
black Cubans were able to attend, further disseminating the old structure
defined by race. Cuba became an
icon to other Latin American countries and others around the world,
specifically for youth and young revolutionaries. All of these contributed to the idea that race as an archaic
model of social structure, and the Cuban Revolution became a movement that put
aside racial differences. Race no
longer divided the Cuban people, and through the revolution, which fostered
ideals of Marxism and socialism, Cuba became one of the most unique countries
in world history.
http://srufaculty.sru.edu/m.matambanadzo/readings/race_toward_equality.pdf
http://www.counterfire.org/articles/a-marxist-history-of-the-world/16089-a-marxist-history-of-the-world-part-97-che-guevara-and-the-cuban-revolution
http://srufaculty.sru.edu/m.matambanadzo/readings/race_toward_equality.pdf
http://www.counterfire.org/articles/a-marxist-history-of-the-world/16089-a-marxist-history-of-the-world-part-97-che-guevara-and-the-cuban-revolution
No comments:
Post a Comment